Publications

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Program

Succeeding as a Strategic CFO

Summary As capital markets and organizational strategies have evolved, so has the role of the chief financial officer (CFO). Today's CFOs are not just gatekeepers of a company's financial information; they... View Details

08 Mar 2016
First Look

March 8, 2016

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=50668 forthcoming Journal of Marketing Research Design of Search Engine Services: Channel Interdependence in Search Engine Results By: Edelman, Benjamin, and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

20 Mar 2007
Research & Ideas

What’s Behind China’s Wild Stock Ride?

Podcast with: Li Jin Interviewer: James Aisner Running Time: 18 min., 55 sec. View Details

Keywords: Financial Services

January 2001 (Revised September 2002)
Case

First Marblehead Corporation (A)

By: D. Quinn Mills and Matt Salloway

Daniel Meyers, chairman and CEO of First Marblehead Corp., provides financial engineering services to educational institutions. This case deals with the market for student loans. View Details

Keywords: Financing and Loans; Education; Markets; Microfinance; Management Teams; Financial Services Industry; Education Industry

November 1978 (Revised June 1985)
Case

Hanson Industries (A)

By: William J. Bruns Jr. and Julie H. Hertenstein

Hanson Industries produces and sells an award-winning design ski boot. Describes the company history from founding through July 1978, the product, production processes, marketing strategy, and background information for related cases on budgeting and finance. View Details

Keywords: Product; Marketing Strategy; Production; Finance; Budgets and Budgeting; Consumer Products Industry

Find at Harvard

July 2005 (Revised September 2016)
Case

24 Hour Fitness (A): The Rise, 1983–2004

By: John R. Wells, Elizabeth A. Raabe and Gabriel Ellsworth

In October 2004, Mark S. Mastrov, CEO of 24 Hour Fitness, reflected on how far his company had come in just over 20 years. From humble beginnings in 1983 in San Leandro, California, 24 Hour Fitness had grown to become the largest privately-owned health-club chain in... View Details

Keywords: 24 Hour Fitness; Mark Mastrov; Health Clubs; Fitness; Gyms; Chain; Weight Loss; Exercise; Personal Training; Retention; Sales Force Compensation; Incentive Systems; Buildings and Facilities; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; For-Profit Firms; Customers; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Satisfaction; Private Equity; Revenue; Geographic Scope; Multinational Firms and Management; Nutrition; Business History; Employees; Recruitment; Selection and Staffing; Human Capital; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Marketing; Operations; Service Operations; Private Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Sales; Salesforce Management; Sports; Strategy; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet; Technology Platform; Web; Web Sites; Capital Structure; Performance; Organizational Structure; Organizational Culture; Health Industry; United States; California; San Francisco

2019
Working Paper

The Comprehensive Effects of a Digital Paywall Sales Strategy

By: Doug J. Chung, Ho Kim and Reo Song

This paper explores the multiple and comprehensive effects of a digital paywall sales strategy, an increasingly common means of go-to-market for media firms. Specifically, we examine the effects of a digital paywall on a media firm’s two sources of income—subscription... View Details

Keywords: Digital Paywall; Demand Substitution; Spillover Effect; Synthetic Control; Sales; Strategy; Media; Newspapers; Publishing Industry

SSRN

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10 Sep 2008
Research & Ideas

Long-Tail Economics? Give Me Blockbusters!

customers and drive distribution for other products in a company's portfolio. A company's commitment to searching out potential blockbusters and then investing in marketing to... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch; Entertainment & Recreation; Pharmaceutical

March 2010 (Revised June 2010)
Case

Dassault Systemes

By: Stefan H. Thomke and Daniela Beyersdorfer

Dassault Systèmes, a leader in product lifecycle management software, has enjoyed a very profitable business model in 3D engineering design. In the past, it has successfully managed market disruptions and opportunities through acquisition and organic innovations. Its... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Innovation and Invention; Product Development; Product Marketing; Technology Industry

May 1986 (Revised July 1995)
Case

General Mills, Inc.: Yoplait Custard-Style Yogurt (A)

By: John A. Quelch

Yoplait's director of new product development is evaluating alternative line extensions including custard-style Yoplait. He must determine what additional research to recommend. Options include a mini-market test, a simulated test market and a fully-fledged test... View Details

Keywords: Food; Product Development; Product Marketing; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

August 1989 (Revised October 1989)
Case

Avon Co.

Avon engineers developed a new type of electric adjustable speed drive. Executives began to make long-range plans for production and marketing. Members of the sales department wondered what pricing recommendations they should make to management on the basis of... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Price; Product Development; Technology Industry

January 1985 (Revised June 1993)
Case

Turner Construction Co.

By: Frank V. Cespedes

In June, 1984, a vice president at Turner Construction Co. must decide whether to approve a construction project being considered by one of Turner's territorial offices and how to manage that territory general manager's apparent reluctance to pursue another account... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Structure; Projects; Market Entry and Exit; Integration; Contracts; Marketing Strategy; Sales; Business or Company Management; Business Offices; Geographic Location; Construction Industry

05 Apr 2017
Research & Ideas

For Women Especially, It Pays to Know What Car Repairs Should Cost

professor in the Marketing Unit at Harvard Business School, and Meghan Busse and Florian Zettelmeyer, both professors at Northwestern University. Somewhere, a radiator leaks... View Details

Keywords: by Wendy Guild Swearingen; Auto; Service

June 2019
Case

Athena Bancorp

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger and Sarah Abbott

Athena Bancorp was founded in 2016 by Beth Daniels, a banking professional with 15 years of experience in the industry. Daniels took advantage of what she perceived as a gap in the market caused by recent industry consolidation, a decreasing industry focus on branch... View Details

Keywords: Banks and Banking; Entrepreneurship; Growth and Development Strategy; Organizational Culture; Human Resources; Strategy; Service Delivery; Banking Industry

26 Feb 2008
First Look

First Look: February 26, 2008

principal can set its payment delay to deter bad-type agents and to attract solely or primarily good-type agents. Through the savings from excluding bad agents, the principal can increase its profits while offering increased payments to... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

October 2000 (Revised April 2001)
Case

Cost of Capital at Ameritrade

By: Mark L. Mitchell and Erik Stafford

Ameritrade Holding Corp. is planning large marketing and technology investments to improve the company's competitive position in deep-discount brokerage by taking advantage of emerging economies of scale. In order to evaluate whether the strategy would generate... View Details

Keywords: Developing Countries and Economies; Asset Pricing; Cash Flow; Cost of Capital; Investment; Marketing; Mathematical Methods; Competition; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Financial Services Industry

2011
Teaching Note

Xinxing Ductile Iron Pipes: Transforming the Management Control System in Time of Crisis (TN)

By: Ning Jia, F. Warren McFarlan and Xiaohui Li

Xinxing Ductile Iron Pipes Co. is a Chinese state-owned enterprise (SOE) that manufactures cast pipe products and steel products. The company had grown to become a dominant player in the ductile iron pipe industry, holding more than 40% domestic market share and nearly... View Details

Keywords: Control Systems; Cost Centers; Manufacturing; Profit Centers; China; Iron ＆ Steel; China

2011
Case

Xinxing Ductile Iron Pipes: Transforming the Management Control System in Time of Crisis

By: Ning Jia, F. Warren McFarlan and Xiaohui Li

Xinxing Ductile Iron Pipes Co. is a Chinese state-owned enterprise (SOE) that manufactures cast pipe products and steel products. The company had grown to become a dominant player in the ductile iron pipe industry, holding more than 40% domestic market share and nearly... View Details

Keywords: Control Systems; Cost Centers; Manufacturing; Profit Centers; China

May 2017
Case

CNS Worldwide

By: Robert J. Dolan and Karthik Easwar

CNS Worldwide has long been the market share leader in the IaaS cloud server market, yet it has remained unprofitable for years. Industry capacity utilization is low, and prices have declined over 70% over the last decade. CNS is considering withdrawing from the market... View Details

Keywords: Price; Marketing; Performance Capacity; Bids and Bidding; Analysis; Web Services Industry